What If Calmer Skin Starts With Fewer Products And Better Ingredients

Your skin routine might be doing too much. We sat down with esthetician and studio owner Demetria Wildenstein of Skin by Demi to unpack why sensitive skin responds best to fewer products, smarter ingredients, and a patient plan that protects the barrier. Demetria brings a rare blend of experience to the table: massage therapy, cosmetology, and aesthetics licenses, years in medical settings, and two decades running a studio on South Gaylord. Her own autoimmune journey with Hashimoto’s shaped a calm-first philosophy that trades hype for results.

We explore the big traps that keep skin irritated: label marketing that overpromises, overlayered actives that overwhelm, and routines that change too fast to learn from. Demetria shares how to audit your products, read ingredient lists with purpose, and build a minimal base of cleanser, moisturizer, sunscreen, plus one targeted active. She explains when medicine helps, when gentle formulas win, and how diet, stress, and hormones play into acne and rashes. If big spas leave you tight and red, her approach to gentle facials and barrier repair offers a different path.

Beyond skincare, Demetria talks about serving a truly diverse clientele—from teens to folks in their 80s—along with accessibility in her ground-floor studio and collaborative work with dermatologists, acupuncturists, and nutrition pros. We also touch on why she favors referrals over heavy social media, how virtual consultations work for product guidance, and the confidence boost that comes from brows, lashes, and makeup done with skin health in mind. If you’ve felt stuck, overwhelmed, or skeptical of glossy claims, this conversation gives you practical steps to find calm and build a routine that lasts.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who struggles with sensitive skin, and leave a quick review to help others find it.

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Nick George.

SPEAKER_02 (00:11):
Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Today I have the great pleasureof introducing your good
neighbor, Demetria Wildstein.
Did I say it right, Demetria?
It's close.
And Demetria owns Skin by Demi.
And I can't wait to hear aboutit.
Tell us all about your businessafter pronouncing your last name
correctly.

SPEAKER_01 (00:31):
Well, Nick, I'm Demetria Wildenstein.
It is my husband's name and it'sa mouthful.
Took me some time to get it usedto it as well.
Basically, Skin by Demi has beenaround and on South Gaylord.
It will be 20 years in May of2026.
But I've had a long history inthe industry.

(00:52):
So I received all threelicensures by 1998.
So I did massage therapy,cosmetology, and aesthetics in
Missouri.
And that position took metraveling around the United
States and landed me in Denverin 2002.
So I've been here for a while,started a family, got married,

(01:16):
decided to stay because that'swhere my husband's roots are.
And that's put me in a whole newcareer path of owning my own
business and working withindividuals one-on-one.
I've worked in doctors' officesprior to having my own studio on
South Gaylord Street.

(01:37):
But basically, I've taken allthat collective information and
each service is receiving partof that treatment of what I've
learned over the years.
So it feels accelerated and moreentailed than what people are
used to receiving.

SPEAKER_02 (01:54):
What made you want to get into skin, get under
people's skin, so to speak?

SPEAKER_01 (01:59):
Honestly, that came from my family.
The journey of getting ready forchurch in the morning and being
one of the oldest and trying toget everybody out the door.
So in high school, I knew Ineeded to earn more money.
And I was working uh in the foodindustry at the time as a shift

(02:20):
manager.
And my family's like, You wethink you should do cosmetology.
So I talked to my dermatologistabout it.
And he said, You know, if youget that license, you could work
in my office.
And I'm like, What?
What does that mean?
And that was before aestheticswas available in Missouri.
And then later I did go back andget that license too.

(02:43):
Uh, so that was in 1994.
And I just started off withthat.
And uh any job offer that waspresented to me, I just didn't
say no.
I took many of them, some ofthem um at the same time.
Like I taught courses andtraveled while I managed and ran
a large salon that also did uhbody and skincare as well.

SPEAKER_02 (03:08):
Nice.
What are some myths ormisconceptions in your specific
niche in skincare?

SPEAKER_01 (03:15):
You know what's hard about that is uh people don't
like to hear that their wayisn't the great way.
But I would say if I were totalk about that, let's go on the
general overhead of marketing,how products are marketed to
people, and how confusing thatis for people.

(03:35):
So I spend a better part of mycareer discussing that on a
daily basis.
Maybe don't use that becauseit's this.
Don't read the label, read theback, read the ingredients.
And that's really a big part ofthe conversation topic.

SPEAKER_02 (03:52):
That's a good idea.
So that was food and what theyput on their face, right?
Absolutely, absolutely.
So um what uh tell us how you uhwhat made you decide to just go
for skin, like uh originally.

SPEAKER_01 (04:08):
What my own skin.
Um, I was always issued, alwaysthe sick kid in the doctor's
office, always needing to takeallergy meds.
And later in life, it wasdiagnosed as Hashimoto's, but I
spent 45 years trying to figurethat out.
So when you suffer withautoimmune, generally you deal

(04:32):
with a lot of skin issues.
It turns into acne, it turnsinto rashes.
And from there, I pretty muchworking side by side with you
know my dermatologist, coming upwith ideas.
Um, he was really helpful in alot of ways, and some ways
weren't helpful.
And I tried organic and then Iwent down that road for a while,

(04:52):
realized that isn't 100%.
And so it's a big meld of thetwo areas.
Sometimes we need med, sometimeswe need just gentle organic or a
couple of ingredients to get usthere.
And with my own journey andkeeping my own skin from being
inflamed, that is basically whatI brought to others.

(05:13):
And I ended up having a name inthat sensitivity field, and I
get a lot of referrals in thatformat.
So that way I can give a nice,gentle facial to a person that
has a hard time at a larger dayspa.
Or um they might turn around andsay, when I leave, my skin feels
tight and red.

(05:34):
And I'm like, yeah, they missedthe mark.
They just didn't know howsensitive you are and what you
need for that facial.
So that's really what I sharewith a lot of my clients, along
with, you know, here's how Ichanged my diet.
Here's some of the peoplelocally that I talk to and work
with, you know, try thisacupuncturist, try this

(05:56):
internist.
Um, here's someone that can helpyou get your diet set into
place.
So things like that, justcollaborating with others, and
then those others collaboratewith me on the skin front.
Let's try real basic.
Um, maybe we're using too manythings on our skin and we just
need two.

(06:17):
So a lot of times it's aboutremoving things and just putting
something new into their hands.
And I think from my ownstruggles, it really helped me
learn an area I wouldn't haveunderstood had I not gone
through it myself.

SPEAKER_02 (06:36):
So um how are you marketing yourself currently in
the digital atmosphere?
And uh who is your targetmarket?

SPEAKER_01 (06:45):
I'm not.
I lose time.
I lose time uh having thoseopportunities.
I do try to get something out toInstagram.
It would be great if I could doonce a month.
Facebook, sometimes I can dothat a little faster, a little
easier, uh, just because thestyles are different and I know

(07:08):
those are different resources.
I am not real excited abouttaking time to do videos.
This is really easy for mebecause me talking to someone
else feels like I'm sitting inmy own studio doing what I do
all day long.
So uh this is easy.
But if I were to just flip ascreen around on my face, eek,

(07:29):
I'm not really into that.
Um I just like to focus on thework and the people that are
coming in.
So right now, I wouldn't say Ihave a big digital marketing.
People learn about me throughreferrals of another person.
They look at my reviews, uh,scary if they probably see my
medias, and then they might turnaround and go, I'm calling her

(07:52):
because this is really workingfor this person.
So that's generally how it'shappening.
I could pick up.
Who's your target market?
I honestly, everybody, I work onpeople that are 13 to 80 in
their 80s.
Uh, if they're mobile and theycan walk into the studio and
park on crazy South GaylordStreet, they are welcome to come

(08:16):
in.
Um, we are one floor, so I dosee people that um need extra
help or, you know, easierparking facilities.
There's only a few spots on theblock, but uh we always try to
make it work and I make surethat I can get them in.
Um, you know, I deal with peoplethat are hearing impaired,

(08:37):
blind, um, or they just jointand they need assistance with a
walker or cane.
Um, I see people that are, youknow, very capable and ride a
bike over and ride a bike backhome that are in the
neighborhood.
I see people that are comingdown from the mountains uh to
see me when they're in town.

(08:58):
But as far as my market goes,anybody who is interested in
having help with their skin orjust freshening up.
And I do do lashes and eyebrowsand makeup.
So sometimes I'm like right now,the day after Thanksgiving, I'm
teaching someone um how to havetheir look for their website.

(09:19):
So I'm working with aphotographer and um a business
consultant designer, and thethree of us are pulling together
for this person on her businessand her new look.
And so that is outside of mystudio.
I go to them for that to getthat look going for her.

SPEAKER_02 (09:37):
Have you ever thought about doing your own
podcast?

SPEAKER_01 (09:41):
No, it sounds like more work.

SPEAKER_02 (09:45):
What do you do here it is?
What do you do for fun?

SPEAKER_01 (09:48):
I mean, if it were scheduled in, I feel like I'm
pretty good with a schedule.
So if somebody gives me enoughtime, I put anything down and
block everybody else out.
I mean, that's how I get to sitwith you today.
But basically, uh, that soundslike fun.
I know nothing about it.

SPEAKER_02 (10:05):
What do you do for fun when you're not doing this?

SPEAKER_01 (10:08):
I love to dance with my husband.
Uh, he taught me how to swingdance 20 years ago.
And that is just something Ireally enjoy.
Um, my son's a musician.
We just got back from listeninghim to play in a nice speak easy
in Bozeman, Montana, doing allof his own music.
And I absolutely, you know,that's a heart throb because I

(10:30):
get to do two things.
I get to dance and see my sonperform on stage, and I love
that.
Um, and then just spending timewith friends and family.
I don't say no to anything.
I've let people teach me how torock climb.
I've had people showing me howto uh snowshoe and cross
country.
I downhilled before I came here,so I knew that prior to moving,

(10:53):
but uh to Colorado.
Honestly, I just I likeadventures.
And um most of the time I'm ayes person than a no person when
it comes to an offer of let'shave a good time.

SPEAKER_02 (11:07):
Jenny, um, what are the what's the big takeaway that
you want people to take awayfrom this interview today?

SPEAKER_01 (11:14):
I I want people to not be too stressed out about
their skin.
Uh their skin can heal, theirlashes can heal, their brows can
heal.
Uh, there's a lot of amazingthings out there that we can
use.
And if they need help with that,I do offer video calls to talk
to people about what works forthem.

(11:35):
Sometimes they're just buying itaround where they can find it.
It's not always necessarily fromme because the world has changed
the way that they shop.
And I am no dummy not to movewith that.
So I allow those opportunitiesto them where they can find
deals.
I give them suggestions.
I want them to know that theyare not stuck in the situation

(11:58):
they're in right now.
They can have help, and I wouldlove to be there for them if
they're ready for that.

SPEAKER_02 (12:05):
What are all of the ways that people can find you in
the digital world and by phone?
Skin by demi?

SPEAKER_01 (12:11):
Definitely, phone is fastest.
Text messaging calls I canusually return within three to
seven hours.
Um, emails can take me 24 to 72hours, just depending on what's
happening in that three days.
It isn't uncommon that I canwork three 12-hour shifts in a
row.

(12:32):
So I focus on who's in front ofme and already on the book.
And then I definitely um tinkerdown the list as time opens up
for me and I respond from there.
What is your phone number?
303-842-4733.
And your website?
Demi D-E-M-I faces F-A-C-E-S dotcom.

SPEAKER_02 (12:58):
Well, Demi, it was a pleasure um interviewing you
today, and we definitely wishyou and Skin by Dimmy the very
best moving forward.

SPEAKER_01 (13:06):
Well, thanks, Nick.
I really appreciate that you dothis.
This is amazing what you'redoing.
And I I'm glad I got to be apart of it.
Thanks for reaching out.

unknown (13:15):
Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 (13:16):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on the
show, go to gmpfortcollins.com.
That's gmpfortcollins.com orcall nine seven zero four three
eight zero eight two five.